It explains Estragon's propensity for poetry, his sensitivity and dreams, his irrational moods.
When Beckett started
writing he did not have a visual image of Vladimir and Estragon.
Estragon is a cold-resistant plant,
so it is often sown before winter, just before the snow falls.
Pozzo provides a handkerchief, but, when Estragon tries to wipe his tears away,
Lucky kicks him in the shins.
Of the two boys who work for Godot only one appears
safe from beatings,"Beckett said, only half-jokingly, that one of Estragon's feet was saved.
This reading is given further
weight early in the first act when Estragon asks Vladimir what it is that he has requested from Godot:.
Rik Mayall played Vladimir and Adrian Edmondson played Estragon, with Philip Jackson as Pozzo and Christopher Ryan as Lucky;
the boy was played by Dean Gaffney and Duncan Thornley.
The Italian Pontedera Theatre Foundation won a similar claim in 2006
when it cast two actresses in the roles of Vladimir and Estragon, albeit in the characters' traditional roles as men.
At any rate, they are not of English stock:
at one point early in the play, Estragon mocks the English pronunciation of"calm"
and has fun with"the story of the Englishman in the brothel.